Category Archives: Journey to the Dream Job

One of the things I learned in the Engineering Design program at McMaster is talking to people; when I worked on my engineering design project, I frequently talked with my “clients”.  It was a good experience.  Now I imagine/daydream how I would work as a freelance designer.  Definitely I will need to talk with my clients a lot.  Why only imagine?  Because it is safe to have stable income to be eligible for Provincial Nominee program.  While I’m a temporary worker, I take a safe way.

Today I talked with a classmate in McMaster.  I wanted to meet him before leaving Hamilton.  One of the good things of the program is that there is a diversity of students with different background, just like EVDS.  One of the items on my to-do list of my career plan phase 1 is to talk to people who run a small business, entrepreneurs, and local artists.  He is the first one.  It is always good to talk with people who have something in common and have a different perspective.

I will start the contract job in Orillia next week, and my main duty will be to talk with people i.e. interpretation.  This is very different from what I did in my engineering design project, but I expect I will lean something in a different way.

I applied for Post Graduate Work Permit program after finishing the master’s program in September, and today I got a work permit.  I can stay in Canada for three more years to do any job with some exceptions.  Now I have a few options to apply for permanent resident, and my current plan is to apply for Ontario Provincial Nominee program.

Many people wonder why I got a second master’s degree, and this is why.  As I mentioned before, when I graduated from University of Calgary, international students only had three months to look for a job after finishing a program, and had to get a job in the field of study in order to get a post graduate work permit.  That’s why I had to go back to Japan.  Now Immigration Canada is way more generous than before, and I’m trying to use this opportunity.  Of course it is still too early to be relieved.  This is only one of the first steps to settle down in Canada.

Here are some FSAQ (Frequently Self Asked Questions)

“If I chose that option then, what would I have done by now?”
“Am I really on the right track?  It doesn’t look like so.”
“Why did I choose this?  Why am I doing this now?  Will this lead me to the place I want to go?”
“Where do I really want to go?”

As I mentioned, I revised my personal mission statement recently; when I am lost, I need something that shows me a way to go.  I know it still needs to be refined, and hope that keep refining it will eventually lead me to a place where I settle down.

I will start the contract job in a couple of weeks, and it will be by the end of March. From April, I will start (or look for) a new job.  Now, I am daydreaming; if I start a business from April, where should I go?  Since I am planning to apply for Ontario Provincial Nominee Program, options will be limited to the cities in Ontario.  I briefly googled “The best places to live in Canada” and “the best places to start a business in Canada”.

According to MoneySense, the top 6 Ontario cities to live are;
1. Ottawa
2. Burlington
3. Kingston
13. Newmarket (followed by Calgary, AB, No. 14)
16. Whitby
17. Oakville

According to Canada Business, the top 6 Ontario cities to do business are;
9. Kitchener
7. Hamilton (Surprise!)
10. Barrie
12. Vaughan
13. Sudbury
15. Ottawa

Ottawa is barely ranked in top 6 Ontario cities for both (15th best city to do business, though), but others do not overlap.  By the way, Toronto is the 47th best city to live and the 33rd best city to do business.  Work/life balance is probably one of the most frequently used terms today when talking about business.  According to the ranking, it seems not easy to balance between life and work.

According to this article, 8 Signs You’ve Found Your Life’s Work, there are signs of your life’s work.  Perhaps, if you are doing a good business and maintain your work/life balance, it may be your best place to live.

I know I am dreaming now, but someday, I want to find my life’s work.  If you want to realize something, you need to dream it first, right?

I serve as a TA again.  This time, I serve in the Design Thinking course led by two instructors: a mechanical engineering professor and an industrial design professor. Since I am half designer half engineer, I seem a perfect match.  Engineers are generally different from people, and I understand both sides.  I enjoy working as a TA in that course, but I will move to Orillia, so I’ll have to leave the class.

Yesterday I went to the class (yes, the class is on Saturdays) and told the industrial design professor that I would move to Orillia to do a contract job as a technical Japanese interpreter.  Working as an interpreter was, as I guessed, surprising for him.

“So, are you going to do something that you don’t use your experiences?”

“No, I need technical knowledge to do the job.  Typical interpreters don’t have technical background and they cannot translate engineers’ language.  I am one of few people who are qualified.”

“So, you are going to do exactly what you do here.”

“?”

“You will be translating between different disciplines.”

He was right.  I had not thought in that way, but  what I will be doing in Orillia is what I have done so far; bridging the gap between engineers and people.  Because my title will be “interpreter”, it sounds like I will interpret between English speakers and Japanese speakers.  But, I have seen many translators who cannot translate engineers’ language to people’s language.  What I will be doing is to interpret engineers’ language.  Though it is not a design job, it is my strength.

Today I came back from Orillia.  I rented a car again, and was supposed to return it by 7 pm, but could not make it for some reasons.  It’s a long story.  I was so disappointed when I got to the rental car office 10 minutes after it closed.  Then, I changed my mind. It happened anyways, so I decided to do something that I cannot do without a car.  After having dinner, I went to a place where I cannot go by bus to see the night view of Hamilton.  (Please, please do not compare this with Hong Kong.)

There are differences between what it is, what it should be, and what it can be.  That I could not return the car in time and that I will have to pay extra fee are what it is. Disappointment is what I think it should be.  Seeing the night view is what it can be.

That I will be a contract Japanese interpreter in coming few months is what it is. Disappointment is what I think it should be.  Now, let’s think what it can be.

Having skills and experiences is one thing.  Getting hired is another thing.  This article introduces tactics that I did not imagine.

The New Science of Resumes – And Why Yours Sinks to the Bottom of the Pile

Is this fair?  Answer: it does not matter.

For your information, SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, i.e., how searchable your web site is when relative keywords are entered in a search engine such as Google.  For your reference, if you google “hiro shibata”, you will probably find my portfolio web site on the top.  If you google “hiroyuki shibata”, you will probably find my LinkedIn profile on the top.  Google your name and see what happens if you are interested.

I am looking for a product design job, and I know I have an obvious disadvantage; I do not have mechanical engineering background.  This must be surprising for those who met me in the industrial design program.  In the program, I was known as an engineering guy who can design, and many people assumed I was a mechanical engineer because I can design mechanical components.  But in fact, my background is electric engineering.  Does it matter?  To call myself product designer, it does not matter.  But to get a product design job, it does matter a lot.  I cannot be found as a qualified candidate.  By the way, in the engineering design program, I found not all mechanical engineers are capable of designing mechanical components.  They can calculate, period.  But they are probably searchable as product designers.

Getting a job seems more tactical matter than doing a job.

Recently I sent a message to some people to ask advice for my career path.  I met them in Calgary, and it’s been four years since I left there, but they are still my mentors.  They gave me some pieces of advice, and now it’s my turn.  What should I start with?

Some of them told me like “to do this, you need to do that”.  Now an optimistic side of me tells me “OK, I am a positive thinker.  I can do this if I do that”.  Then a realistic side of me tells me “no, you are not a positive thinker but only an optimist.  You cannot do this because you have to do that”.  Now a desperate side of me tells “OK, let’s do it and see how I fail”.

Today the recruiting agency sent me a contract form.  I just need to sign it and send it back, then I will be a contract Japanese interpreter from next month.  How close is it to my goal?  If the goal is Calgary and I start from Hamilton, I will be in Montreal next month.  Am I a looser?  Apparently, yes.

Now, what should a looser do?  Use any opportunity.  If there is no opportunity, make opportunities.  It’s up to me.

“灰色の日に行き詰っても、諦めは出来ないの、Maybe Tomorrow”

”だけど明日はきっといい事あると信じてたいの、Maybe Tomorrow”

Maybe tomorrow…

Since I graduated from my university, I have lived in four countries, done two full-time jobs, one long-term volunteer job, three contract-like jobs, one freelance job, and some occasional part-time jobs.  Now I have two master’s degrees.  Many people are impressed, and enjoy listening to my story.  But being a rolling stone is tough.

Today I visited a recruiting agency to talk about the contract Japanese translator/interpreter job.  The agent seemed to be impressed by my experiences, and found I am one of few people who have enough skills, experiences, and capability to do this job.  I have not made any decision yet; I still need to have an interview with the employer.  But, apparently, being a rolling stone helps me to get some types of jobs.  However, the point is, this is not the profession that I want to pursue.

I’m just wondering; when will my rolling stone story lead me to a dream job?  For now, let’s assume it lets me learn many things that other people have never imagined; otherwise it’s tough to avoid getting discouraged.